The  New 


Chief  of  i  olice 


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A    Dramatic    Exposure 

of    Modern    Hypocrisy 
BY 


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WALTER  MONTAGUE 


Copyright  October  30.  1913.    Class  D.    No.  34781 


This  playlet  was  first  introduced  at  the  Hippodrome  Theater, 
Los  Angeles,  C»l.,  the  week  of  May  4th,  1914,  and  created  a 
sensation.  It  is  a  virile  gripping  story  of  social  conditions  as  they 
exist  today.  Published  exclusively  by  The  Monith  Publishing 
Company,  341  South  Los  Angeles  Street,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 


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To  tke  Public 

The  Publishers  feel  that  no  apology  is  needed  in  presenting 
this  playlet  to  the  public.  We  hold  no  brief  for  either  side  of 
the  question,  but  merely*  place  it  before  you,  as  a  point  of  View 
to  accept  or  condemn  as  you  choose.  In  order  to  meet  the 
demand  of  thousands  of  people  who  had  no  opportunity  to  see  the 
playlet,  we  ha^e  secured  the  publishing  rights  from  the  Author, 
Walter  Montague,  and  offer  it  to  you  word  for  word  as  it  was 
played  under  his  direction. 

THE  PUBLISHERS. 


Respectfully  Dedicated  To 

the  host  of  good  fellow's,  of  both  sexes,  who,  while  believing 
in  majority  rule,  feel  that  the  minority  have  certain  definite 
rights,  and  who  regret  the  lack  of  inteligence  in  these  pseudo 
reformers — w"ho  will  not  admit  a  middle  ground — but  must  rule 
or  ruin. 

WALTER  MONTAGUE. 


NOTE.  — TKis  playlet  is  fully  protected  by*  copyright.  The  undersigned 
vJill  pay*  a  re-oJard  of  $25.00  for  information  that  tCill  lead  to  the  arrest  and  con- 
viction of  any*  person  gi-Oing  an  unauthorized  public  performance  of  The  NevJ 
Chief  of  Police. 

WALTER  MONTAGUE, 

209   Pantages  Theater   Building, 

San  Francisco,   Cal. 


SKLfl 
URfi 


The  New  Chief  of  Police 


A  Story  Taken  From  Life 

BY    .       •'* 

WALTER  MONTAGUE 


S.CE.NE 

An  office  of  a  chief  of  police.  A  desk  C.  with  a  swivel 
chair.  There  is  an  entrance  R.  and  L.  U.  The  room  to  be 
fitted  up  as  an  office.  There  is  a  chair  down  R. 

CAST 

Chief  Saunders  ,...jNewly  Appointed 

Dora. La  Fere ^ ........A  Society  Bud 

Joe  Masters.....,, A  Sailor 

Mrs.  De  Witt  Beecher. 

President  Women's  Federated  Clubs 

CHIEF 

(Discovered  sitting  at  his  desk  C.  He  is  in  full  uni- 
form. The  telephone  bell  rings  at1' rise.  He  answers  it.) 

Hello.    (Pause.} 

Who?     Mrs.    De    Witt — Beecher — president    of    the 
Women's  Federated  Clubs. 
'All  right — send  her  up.'    • 

(He  hooks   up  the  phone  and  retakes  it  off  hook.) 


THE   NEW   CH1KP   OF 


Hello,  Sergeant.  This  is  the  Ciii  •''.  Get  that  sailor  out. 
of  the  Bullpen,  and  have  him  sent  up  when  I  ring  for 
him. 

(Hangs  up  phone.) 

MRS.  BEKCHKK 

(Enters  R.  U.  E.    A  1,<  '  <j  ivoman,  ivlio  •/.< 

elegantly  dressed,  uses  a  lorgnette.)  Good  morning,  Chief 
Saunders. 


Good  morning,  Mrs.  De  Witt  —  Beecher-  -won't  you 
be  seated?    (Waving  her  to  a  sot-  R.) 


MRS.  BEKCHER 

(Who  sit*) 

Thank  you.  I  have  called  in  my  official  capacity  as 
President  of  the  Women's  Federated  Clubs,,  to  discuss 
the  latest  outrage  en  one  of  o;^  young  girls. 

CHTW 
Yes  —  the  man  has  been  a 

MRS.  BKKGHKK 

You  are,.  of  course,  a\var-  that  the  uomeu  of  this  city 
are  largely  responsible  for  the  election  of  the  Mayor, 
who  appointed  you  Chief  of  PoH  .•  •  \\  ith  our  approval  — 
and  are  taking  an  active  intenvl  hi  the  enforcement  of 
the  law. 


THE   NEW   CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


CHIEF 
Yes,  the  women  of  this  city  are  very  active  in  politics. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

We  have  noticed,  with  a  great  deal  of  alarm,  that 
since  we  have  closed  the  redlight  district,  that  respectable 
women  and  girls  are  being  insulted  on  the  street,  almost 
hourly,  and  we  demand  that  immediate  steps  be  taken 
to  suppress  it. 

CHIEF 
By  whom? 

MRS.  BEECHER 
By  the  Police  Department — of  course. 

CHIEF 

May  the  department  rely  upon  the  co-operation  of  the 
Women's  Federated  Clubs? 

MRS.  BEECHER 
Most  certainly — why  do  you  ask? 

CHIEF 

Because  heretofore  the  women  of  this  city  have  failed 
to  give  us  any  real  help,  they  have  dealt  only  with 
effects — not  cause. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
Why,  Chief — how  dare  you  make  such  a  statement? 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF    POLICE 


We  women  have  ought  vice  for  four  years;  we  have 
closed  every  disreputable  house  in  this  city — we  have 
driven  those  unspeakable  women — (Pause?} 

CHIEF 

Yes — you  have  driven  these  unspeakable  women — but 
where  have  you  driven  them?  (Pause.} 

Pray  don't  hesitate — my  dear  Mrs.  De  Witt  Beecher; 
where  have  you  driven  them?  (Pause.} 

You  have  driven  them  from  the  restricted  district 
all  over  the  city. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

We  have  closed  the  brothels — it  is  for  the  police  to 
see  that  they  don't  open  again.  A  seaport  with  a  popula- 
tion of  350,000  without  a  redlight  district — is  a  record. 

CHIEF 

Yes,  a  record  of  inefficiency,  and  a  monument  to 
ignorance. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
(Rises  indignantly.)     Chief  Saunders! 

CHIEF 

Yes — crass  ignorance.  Since  you  have  been  given  the 
vote,  you  have  taken  upon  yourself  the  settlement  of 
problems  you  do  not  understand.  You  have  fought  vice — 
yes ;  in  and  out  of  season  you  have  clamored  for  its  sup- 
pression ;  but  through  ignorance — wilful  or  otherwise — 
you  have  never  raised  a  finger  to  remove  the  cause. 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF    POLICE 


MRS.  BEECHER 
That  is  not  a  fact. 

CHIEF 

Pardon  me — I  state  a  truth.  Not  only  have  you  good 
women  contributed  to  a  low  state  of  morals — but  you 
refuse  to  aid  the  victims. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

I  protest.  In  the  name  of  the  womanhood  of  this 
State — I  protest. 

CHIEF 

I  will  show  you  what  I  mean,  in  the  case  you  have 
come  to  see  me  about.  I  will  prove  to  you  that  the  women 
in  this  city — the  good  women — the  mothers  of  grown-up 
daughters — are  partly  responsible  for  the  conditions  they 
complain  of. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

How  dare  you  make  such  a  statement?  It  is  a  re- 
flection upon  the  modesty  of  this  young  woman  who  was 
so  grossly  insulted. 

CHIEF 
I  mean  it  to  be. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

She  comes  from  one  of  our  best  families — her  char- 
acter is  above  reproach. 


THE   NEW   CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


CHIEF 
Granted — but  this  sailor  did  not  know  that. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

She  was  dressed  in  the  height  of  fashion — couldn't 
he  tell  from  her  appearance  that  she  was  a  lady  ? 

CHIEF 
No. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
(Horrified.)    Chief  Saunders! 

CHIEF 

It  is  true.  This  man  has  been  in  every  port  in  the 
world.  His  acquaintance  with  women  has  been  restricted 
to  a  certain  class;  he  has  no  other  means  of  judging  a 
woman,  except  from  her  appearance ;  and  had  this  young 
woman,  whose  character  you  claim  to  be  above  reproach, 
not  suggested  a  woman  of  the  Underworld,  she  would 
never  have  been  insulted. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

You  forget  yourself,  Chief  Saunders.  You  are  insult- 
ing the  womanhood  of  this  city.  I  will  not  listen  to  any 
more.  (Starts  to  exit.) 

CHIEF 

(Stops  her.)  You  must  stay,  Madam.  You  cannot 
escape  your  responsibilities. 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


MRS.  BEECHER 
Would  you  detain  me  here  by  force  ? 

CHIEF 
If  necessary — yes. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

(Resumes  her  seat.)  You  will  hear  of  this  later — Chief 
Saunders. 

CHIEF 

I  am  responsible  for  my  actions,  Madam. 
(In  phone.)    Sergeant — send  up  that  sailor.    (Hangs 
up.) 

MRS.  BEECHER 

(Rises.)  I  will  not  remain  in  the  same  room  with 
that  beast. 

CHIEF 

(Sarcastically.)  Have  no  fear,  Madam;  he  will  be 
as  uncomfortable  in  your  society  as  you  are  in  his. 

(The  sailor  enters  L.  U.  E.  with  his  hat  in  his  hand. 
Mrs.  Beecher  examines  him  through  her  glasses.) 

What  is  your  name? 

JOE 
Joe  Masters. 

CHIEF 
What  is  your  occupation? 


THE   NEW   CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


JOE 

Sailor — able  seaman.    I'm  just  back  from  a  whaling 
cruise. 

CHIEF 
Married  or  single  ? 

JOE 
Single. 

CHIEF 
When  did  you  arrive  in  this  port  ? 

JOE 
A  week  ago. 

CHIEF 
How  long  were  you  at  sea  ? 

JOE 
Eight  months. 

CHIEF 

And  during  that  eight  months  you  remained  aboard 
your  ship  ? 

JOE 
Except  when  we  camped  in  the  ice  fields. 

CHIEF 
When  you  came  ashore  here,  where  did  you  make  for? 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF    POLICE 


JOE 
I  started  for  the  dance  halls. 

CHIEF 
Why  did  you  start  for  the  dance  halls  ? 

JOE 
That's  the  only  place  a  sailor  can  have  any  fun. 

CHIEF 

Didn't  you  know  that  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  had  a  reading 
room  for  sailors? 

JOE 

Yes — but  men  who  go  to  the  Arctic  huntin'  finns 
ain  't  that  kind  of  a  sailor. 

(Pause.   Chief  looks  at  Mrs.  Beecher.) 

A  man  home  from  an  eight  months  cruise  on  the 
ice  wants  company.  Why,  for  over  six  months  I  didn't 
see  a  white  woman.  I  wanted  to  get  into  a  crowd — I 
wanted  to  be  free  and  easy,  and  feel  I  was  welcome. 

CHIEF 
Go  on. 

JOE 

Well,  \vhen  I  went  down  the  line — I  found  all  the 
dance  halls  closed  up  ;  no  light — no  dancing — no  women ; 
and  nothing  to  drink  but  grape  juice. 


10  THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


CHIEF 
Go  on. 

JOE 

I  asked  a  cop  what  had  struck  the  town,  and  where 
a  man  could  go  to  have  a  good  time,  and  he  said  there 
was  no  place  in  town  for  a  bum  like  me — that  if  I  wanted 
to  have  any  fun,  I'd  have  to  wear  a  claw  hammer — join 
a  swell  club,  and  stop  at  a  swell  hotel. 

CHIEF 
Go  on. 

JOE 

I  thought  he  was  kiddin'  me  at  first,  until  he  said  that 
a  bunch  of  fool  women  were  trying  to  make  a  Sunday 
school  out  of  a  seaport. 

(Mrs.  Beecher  sniffs.) 

Then  I  asked  him  where — where — 

(Looks  at  Mrs.  Beecher  and  stops.) 

CHIEF 
Then  you  asked  him  where  the  redlight  district  was  ? 

JOE 

Yes. 

CHIEF 
And  what  did  he  say? 

JOE 
He  said  it  had  spread  all  over  the  city. 


THE  KKVV  CHIEF  OP  PQLJCE  11 

CHIEF 
What  did  yon  do  then? 

t 
JOE 

T  started  up-town,  *nd — and 


CHIEF 
Go  on. 

JOE 

T  was  crazy  for  someone  to  talk  to,  and  when  I  saw 
a  girl  eoniin'  down  thp  street  that  looked  like  a  dance-hall 
girl  —  T  stopped  her. 


outrage. 


MRS.  BEECHEB 
iuflujH,  ••'•'!  if.)     A   dance-hall  girl  —  this  is  an 


CHIEF 

This  is  the  truth,  Madam.  (To  Joe.)  What  made  yon 
think  sho  was  a.  dance-hall  girl? 

JOE 

By  the  look  c±'  her.  She  didn't  have  much  on,  and 
what  little  she  had  fitted  her  like  a  wet  bathing  suit.  Her 
face  was  painted  —  and  yon  could  see  her  leg  up  to 
the  knee. 


12 THE 'NEW  CHIEF  OF  POLICE 

CHIEF' 

And  you  didn't  think  you  were  going  wrong  in  speak- 
ing to  her? 

JOE 

No,  sir.    I  thought  she  dressed  that  way  to  let  men 
know  she  was  a  sporting  woman. 

CHIEF 
What  did  you  say  to  her? 

JOE 
Hello,  Kiddo. 

CHIEF 

Would  you  have  spoken  to  her  if  you  had  thought 
she  was  a  respectable  woman? 

JOE 
No,  sir. 

CHIEF 
And  why  not  ? 

JOE 

Because — well,  because  I  got  a  mother  and  two  sisters. 
But  they  don't  dress  like  she  did. 

CHIEF 
That  will  do.    Step  into  the  next  room. 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF    POLICE 


JOE 

(Going  up  to  door  L.  U.  E.) 

(At  door.)  Say,  Chief,  I  ain't  the  kind  of  man  to 
insult  a  good  woman,  nor  I  don't  want  you  to  think  I'm 
doin'  the  baby  act.  If  I  done  wrong,  I'll  take  what's 
comin*  to  me;  but  if  that  girl  had  looked  the  lady,  I 
would  have  treated  her  as  such.  (Exit  L.  U.  E.) 

CHIEF 
In  that  man's  statement  lies  the  root  of  the  trouble. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
(Incredulously.}  Do  you  believe  him? 

CHIEF 

Yes.  my  experience  as  a  policeman  has  taught  me  that 
a  modest  woman  has  less  to  fear  from  a  rough  neck  than 
from  some  of  the  young  gentlemen  about  town. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

But  this  girl  gave  him  absolutely  no  encouragement 
to  address  her.  We  know  her — she  is  a  lady — and  demand 
that  an  example  be  made  of  this  man. 

CHIEF 

.He  should  be  punished,  Madam ;  but  what  of  the  girl  ? 
(As  she  starts  to  interrupt.}  I  have  made  a  personal 
investigation  of  this  case,  Madam,  and  know  the  facts. 


THE   NEW    CHIEF   OF   POLICE 


MRS.  BEECHER 
With  what  result  ? 

CHIEF 

You  shall  see.  (In  phone.)  Sergeant — send  in  Miss 
La  Fere. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
Is  she  here? 

CHIEF 

Yes,  I  have  requested  her  to  wear  the  costume  she  had 
on  when  this  man  insulted  her. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

You  surely  do  not  intend  to  question  her  on  such  a 
delicate  subject? 

CHIEF 

I  am.  going  to  question  her  about  her  costume  and 
her  habits;  if  both  are  above  reproach,  her  sensibilities 
will  not  be  outraged. 

DORA 

(Enters  with  affected  timidity  L.  F.  E.  She  stops, 
sees  Mrs.  Beecher,  runs  to  her  R.  gushingly.)  Oh,  Mrs. 
De  Witt— Beecher,  isn't  this  dreadful? 


THE   NEW    CHIEF    OF   POLICE  15 


MRS.  BEECHER 

(Embracing  her.)  There — there,  dear,  we  women 
must  make  sacrifices  for  the  good  cause.  The  best  people 
of  the  city  are  with  you,  and  believe  in  you. 

DORA 

I  was  never  so  mortified  in  my  life.  (Crying  on  her 
shoulder.)  Just  fancy  being  in  a  police  station! 

MRS.  BEECHER 

There — there,  dear,  control  yourself.  The  Chief  of 
Police  wishes  to  ask  you  a  few  questions. 

DORA 

(Impulsively  to  the  Chief.)  Oh,  Chief  Saunders,  isn't 
it  dreadful  that  a  lady  cannot  go  down  the  street  without 
being  insulted? 

CHIEF 

(With  a  very  cold  manner.)  Where  did  you  spend 
most  of  your  time  yesterday  afternoon  ? 

DORA 
At  the  St.  Pancras  Hotel. 

CHIEF 
Do  you  live  there  1 

DORA 
Oh,  no — I  live  at  home. 


16  THE  NEW  CHIEF  OF  POLICE 

CHIEF 
Did  you  go  to  the  hotel  alone? 

DORA 

Yes. 

CHIEF 
To  see  who  ? 

DORA 
Mrs.  Alleton  gave  a  bridge  party. 

CHIEF 
Did  you  play  bridge  for  money? 

DORA 
Of  course. 

CHIEF 

Then,  according  to  the  laws  of  this  city,  it  is  my  duty 
to  arrest  you  as  a  common  gambler. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

But,  Chief  Saunders,  Mrs.  Alleton  is  a  leader  of 
society;  in  fact,  all  the  ladies  who  play  bridge  are  promi- 
nent society  women. 

CHIEF 

Then,  I  am  to  understand  that  the  law  against  gam- 
bling doesn't  apply  to  society  women? 


THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE  17 


MRS.  BEECHER 

Oh,  not  that  exactly.    Bridge  is  a  society  woman's 
recreation. 

CHIEF 

Really — we  will  let  that  pass  for  the  moment.    (To 
Dora.}  Were  any  refreshments  served? 

DORA 
( Confused. )  Why — er — certainly. 

CHIEF 
What  did  they  consist  of  ? 

DORA 
(Confused.}    Why — er — the  usual  thing. 

CHIEF 

Miss  La  Fere,  I  want  the  truth.   What  did  those  re- 
freshments consist  of? 

DORA 
(Hesitatingly.}    Well — cocktails,  and  high  balls. 

CHIEF 
And  how  many  cocktails  and  high  balls  did  you  drink  ? 

DORA 
Well,  really,  Chief 


18  THE  NEW  CHIEF-  OP  POLICE 

CHIEF 
Answer  me. 

DORA 
Oh,  not  many — four,  possibly  five. 

CHIEF 
Did  you  feel  the  effect  of  what  you  drank? 

DORA 
Oh,  dear,  no. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

Chief  Saunders  —  those  were  ladies,  and  they  hold 
their — er — refreshments  like  ladies. 

CHIEF 

It  does  not  alter  the  fact  that  this  girl  had  been 
drinking. 

DORA 
Why — the  idea! 

CHIEF 
Did  any  of  the  ladies  smoke  cigarettes? 

DORA 

Why,  Chief  Saunders! 


THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE  19 


CHIEF 
Answer  me. 

DORA 

Yes.  But  it  is  the  fashion  now — the  first  women  in 
the  country  smoke  cigarettes. 

CHIEF 

So  do  sporting  women.  However,  we  will  let  that 
pass.  Yet,  according  to  your  own  statement,  on  the  after- 
noon in  question  you  gambled,  drank  whiskey  and 
smoked  cigarettes. 

DORA 
Why,  Chief  Saunders — how  crudely  you  express  it. 

CHIEF 

But  you  must  remember  I  am  not  a  society  man — I 
am  only  a  policeman.  Who  chooses  your  gowns,  Miss  La 
Fere? 

DORA 
I  do,  of  course. 

CHIEF 

And  you  gave  orders  that  it  was  to  be  made  skin- 
tight ? 

DORA 
Certainly — it  is  the  fashion. 


20  THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE 

CHIEF 
Does  your  mother  approve  of  the  way  you  dress  ? 

DORA 
Certainly. 

CHIEF 

Do  you  think  you  dress  as  a  modest,  refined  woman 
should  dress  ? 

DORA 
Certainly. 

CHIEF 

Well,  you  don 't.  There  isn  't  a  line  of  your  figure  that 
isn't  in  plain  view;  there  isn't  anything  left  to  the 
imagination;  your  whole  appearance  is  an  appeal  to  the 
basest  passions  of  men;  you  paint  your  face  with  the 
abandon  of  a  courtesan;  you  gamble,  drink  and  smoke 
cigarettes,  and  call  yourself  a  lady ;  if  you  and  your  kind 
represent  the  best  womanhood  of  America,  then  God 
help  America. 

DORA 
Do  you  know  to  whom  you  are  speaking? 

CHIEF 

Quite  well.  I  am  speaking  to  a  girl  whose  grand- 
father came  across  the  plains  with  nothing  but  the  clothes 
on  his  back  and  courage  in  his  heart ;  whose  grandmother 
shared  the  privations  and  dangers  of  those  pioneer  days. 


THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE  21 


Two  real  Americans,  honest,  simple,  brave.  I  am  speak- 
ing to  the  granddaughter  who  is  plebian  to  the  core, 
yet  apes  the  manner  of  the  aristocrat,  who  spends  the 
gold  her  forefathers  grubbed  from  the  earth  over  the 
gaming  table — to  a  gjrl  the  stranger  cannot  distinguish 
from  the  fallen  woman — and  who  seeks  the  protection 
of  the  police  to  save  her  from  her  own  immodesty. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

I'll  have  your  star  for  this.  We  women  will  petition 
the  Mayor  for  your  resignation  at  once — and  he  dare  not 
refuse. 

CHIEF 
We  women — 

MRS.  BEECHER 
Yes — the  real  reformers  of  this  city. 

CHIEF 

The  real  agitators,  you  mean — a  small  minority, 
whose  blatant  voice  is  oftener  heard  in  public  places  than 
in  her  home.  The  real  reformer  finds  her  life  work  at 
the  cradle — not  on  the  rostrum. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
You  are  not  doing  your  duty  to  this  city. 

CHIEF 
True.  If  I  did  my  duty,  I  would  arrest  the  proprietors 


22 THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE 

of  these  swell  hotels,  who  permit  gambling  in  defiance 
of  the  law;  I  would  arrest  the  society  bridge  gambler 
of  both  sexes.  I  would  raid  your  society  functions,  whose 
dancing  shames  the  Barbary  Coast,  from  whence  they 
came.  If  I  did  my  duty,  you  reformers  would  be  the 
first  to  howl. 

MRS.  BEECHER 

The  Socialists  are  to  be  congratulated  on  having  so 
able  a  champion.  It  explains  your  interest  in  this  wretch 
who  insults  women,  and  who,  no  doubt,  will  be  allowed 
to  go  free. 

CHIEF 

He  will  go  free — for  that  girl  will  not  appear  to 
prosecute  him. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
But  I  say  she  shall — she  must. 

CHIEF 

Let  her — and  the  moment  she  comes  off  the  witness 
stand,  I  will  arrest  her  as  a  common  gambler. 

DORA 

Oli,  Mrs.  Beecher,  that  would  be  dreadful — he  must 
not  do  it. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
Calm  yourself,  dear — he  cannot  prove  it. 


THE    NEW    CHIEF  OF    POLICE  23 


DORA 

Oh,  Chief — please — please,  the  disgrace  would  be 
terrible. 

CHIEF 

You  mean  the  publicity  would  be  terrible — the  dis- 
grace is  in  being  found  out. 

DORA 

But,  Chief — I  did  not  think  I  was  doing  wrong;  all 
the  girls  in  my  set  do  the  same  thing — I  will  apolo- 
gize, T— 

MRS.  BEECHER 
I )  you  take  my  advice,  you  will  do  nothing  of  the  sort. 

CHIEF 

Your  ailvi'/'-.  Madam.  (Pointing  to  Dora,  who  'is 
sli"tnc-d.)  There  stands  a  living  example  of  the  teachings 
of  you  and  your  kind;  an  opportunity  neglected  for  the 
glare  of  the  public  calcium;  and  yet  you  declare  yourself 
competent  to  direct  the  affairs  of  this  city. 

MRS.  BEECHER 
How  d;ire  you! 

CHIEF 

(Pointing  at  Dora.)  Look  at  her,  and  ask  me  again 
why  I  dare.  Spoiled  by  riches  she  did  not  earn — she 


24  THE    NEW    CHIEF    OF    POLICE 


plays  cards  for  money — a  gambler.  She  drinks  whiskey 
and  wine  as  a  matter  of  course — a  potential  xlrunkard : 
she  is  a  slave  to  cigarettes,  which  weaken  her  mentality; 
her  body  is  decorated  in  a  manner  to  excite  men's  basest 
passions;  if  that  is  a  sample  of  what  your  teaching  has 
done  for  the  individual — what  can  you  do  for  the  nation  ? 
(They  hang  their  heads.}  Go  back  to  your  homes;  teach 
your  children  the  simple  virtues,  and  before  you  attempt 
to  lay  down  the  moral  law  for  this  city — remember  that 
reform,  like  charity,  begins  at  home. 


CURTAIN 


PRESS  OF 

WM.   B     STRAUBE 

LOS  ANGELE0 


.^  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


LANDERS  STEVENS  and  GEORGIE  COOPER 


